When did you last get your hearing checked? If it’s been years instead of months, you might want to talk to an audiologist and schedule a test. You might think everything is fine, but if you’ve started turning up the volume on the TV or radio or asking people to repeat themselves, these could be early signs of hearing loss. If you’re not sure if you should call to schedule a hearing test, here are four good reasons to do so.
Hearing Loss Can Be Gradual
It’s not very common to have perfect hearing one day and lose it the next. Hearing loss usually happens slowly, so many of us don’t really notice that we’re having trouble hearing until our hearing has worsened. Getting your hearing checked regularly can help you find problems early on.
If tests show that you have hearing loss, your audiologist can suggest ways to help you hear better. Most of the time, it’s best to step in early. If you can’t hear well, don’t try to ignore it and hope that your hearing will get better on its own.
Hearing Loss Can Be Treated
You might think there’s nothing that can be done if you have hearing loss. It’s not like that. Hearing loss can happen for a lot of different reasons, and many of them can be fixed. If you have an infection, too much earwax in your ear canal or have started to hear ringing in your ears, there are ways to treat these problems.
The right treatment can help ease your symptoms and, hopefully, help you hear better. Hearing aids may help if there is no obvious reason for the problem. Hearing aids make sounds louder, and they can improve your quality of life in a huge way.
Hearing Tests Are Quick and Painless
For a lot of people, the thought of going to see a doctor or nurse is scary. Many people are afraid of tests and other kinds of evaluations and it’s also common to be nervous about getting the results. Don’t be afraid of getting your hearing checked. These tests are short and are non-invasive. During the test, you won’t feel any pain at all, and your audiologist will do everything they can to help you stay calm.
To test how well you hear, you’ll just have to listen to and answer questions about different sounds, tones and noises. Your audiologist can figure out the best way to treat you based on the results of a hearing test. If you do have hearing loss, getting help can make a huge difference in your health and happiness.
Further Hearing Loss Can Be Avoided
Because hearing loss happens so slowly, as we’ve discussed, many people don’t realize what is happening to their hearing. After a while, they start making changes to their lives without even realizing it. Getting your hearing checked can be a wake-up call. You can’t fix hearing loss that has already happened, but you can slow its progress. If your hearing loss isn’t too bad, you’ll want to find out how to keep it from getting worse.
